Friday, July 04, 2008

King Tuheitia visits Orakei

A visit to Tamaki Makaurau tomorrow by King Tuheitia is a chance for Ngati Whatua to celebrate a very old relationship.

Grant Hawke, the chair of Ngati Whatua o Orakei, says one of the hapu's leading ancestors, Apihai Te Kawau, lived for a period with Potatau te Wherowhero and his son Tawhiao.

Princess te Puea was a regular visitor to the marae when it was based down at Okahu Bay, and the late Maori Queen, Te Atairangikaahu, was no stranger to Takaparawha.

He says it's important to keep the links strong.

“It’s our confirmation to Kingi Tuheitia that we support the Kingitanga and while we’re the prow of the waka of Tainui, so we’ve always known that and we always appreciate that so we will recognise that,” Mr Hawke says.

The mayors of Auckland's cities will also be present to support the kaupapa.

LIFE OF NGOI PEWHAIRANGI LAUNCHED IN HOME MARAE

Whanau of Ngoingoi Pewhairangi will be out in force at Tokomaru Bay this weekend to launch a biography of the Te Whanau-a-Ruataupare songwriter best known for her association with Dalvanius Prime and the Patea Maori Club.

Biographer Tania Ka-ai says her relative was also known for her contribution to the early years of kohanga reo and her role in setting up the National Weavers Association.

That's why the book is called Ngoingoi Pewhairangi - A Remarkable Life.

Dr Ka-ai says it was during the party to celebrate her doctorate that Ben Pewhairangi put the hard word on her to write about his late wife, and it was an honour she could not turn down.

Ngoingoi Pewhairangi, who died in 1985, wrote Prince Tui Teka's hit He Ipo and Patea Maori Club's Poi e, the only te reo Maori song to top the New Zealand charts.

MAORI ON BOTH SIDES OF PACIFIC CUP TUSSLE

Two of the best Maori rugby players will line up against the New Zealand Maori team in Sunday's Pacific Nations Cup finale in Sydney.

Rotorua-based commentator Maru Maniapoto says the Maori team delivered a strong second half performance to down Japan last week.

But it will need a bit extra against the only other unbeaten team in the tournament, Australia A, which also includes the midfield combo of Morgan Tuhunui and Te Mana Tau.

HEALTH CONFERENCE BOOSTS WORKER CONFIDENCE

Maori health practitioners have had a shot in the arm from the Public Health Association conference this week in Waitangi.

Lisa McNab, the hui convenor, says there was a huge Maori presence over the three days.

She says Maori communities and kaimahi Maori are providing their own solutions to their health problems.

“The Maori workforce in public health is alive and well. We are doing some fantastic stuff out there. We are the solution to a number of the problems that Maori are always being told we feature highly in,” Ms McNab says.

The conference was cheered by research showing an increase in Maori life expectancy and more Maori in positions of influence.

PARTY FOR THE POTATO IN HAWKES BAY

A Hawkes Bay grower is throwing a party for the humble potato.

Hanui Lawrence of the Maori Potato Growers company says the tiwai is an under-appreciated hidden treasure.

She has organised a hui at Waipatu Marae tomorrow to mark the United Nations International Year of the Potato, which will include food stalls, potato sculptures, hangi demonstrations and guest chefs.

Mrs Lawrence says growing crops is a good use of idle land around marae.

“We had a coupole of acres of family land next to the marae. In there we’ve hahd Maori potatoes, kumara, corn and kamokamo, real good staple kai that supplements the marae when there’s a tangi and any other function here. It’s just a matter of hopping over to the garden, and there they are,” Mrs Lawrence says.

She's like to see all marae putting in gardens, like they had in days past.

AOTEAROA SHOWBAND TURNED INTO SCHOOL MUSICAL

A musical recounting the history of the Maori showbands ends its debut season in Rotorua this weekend.

Showband Aotearoa has been a joint production by Rotorua Boys' High and Rotorua Girls' High.

Most of the music was written by Rim D Paul, a former member of the Maori High Quins, who is now the music director at the boys high school.

Script and lyrics are by playwright John Broughton.

The artistic director, Laytee George, says the 70 students taking part enjoyed learning a unique piece of indigenous musical history, which took Maori musicians to Australia and around the world.

Recession threat to health

A leading researcher is warning of the effects of economic recession on health.

Professor Tony Blakely for Otago University says the economic restructuring of the eighties and nineties knocked back what had been a promising trend of increasing Maori life expectancy.

He says the data coming out now are an illustration of how governments need to appreciate the long term impact of their policies on people's lives.

“Those structural reforms in the 1980s and 1990s were quite devastating for one group in our society, particularly for Maori and also for Pacific people. We don’t want to repeat that. If we are gong to move into a recession, possibly in the next we while, we have to learn from the past and not just respond to emergencies by implementing polices that whack one group,” Mr Blakely says.

A lot of work by government and iwi health providers over the past decade has put Maori back on the right track, and average life expectancy is now 15 years more than at the end of World War two.

KEY DEFENDS MINISTER IN WAITING FINLAYSON

National Party leader John Key says the party's prospective treaty negotiations minister is eminently qualified for the job.

The Prime Minister. Helen Clark, has warned the pace of settlements will slow if National becomes government, because Chris Finlayson doesn't have the necessary experience.

But Mr Key says the former Bell Gully lawyer is extremely well known and well respected in the treaty field.

“We've been round the country to a lot of iwi. Chris hsa been working with all the relevant groups, a lot of the legal groups, and also with iwi, he’s got a sensational knowledge in this stuff, he played a big role in Ngai Tahu in the negotiation of their settlements, but also many others. He’s an absolutely first class barrister,” Mr Key says.

He says National would like to maintain the type of flexibility, creativity and seniority that current treaty minister Michael Cullen has brought to the portfolio.

PLANT KNOWLEDGE FIRST START FOR RONGOA

You may be able to recognise a pohutukawa and a ti tree... but can you tell a houhere or lace bark from a horoeka or lancewood?

A Waikato University course aims to give people the basic tools to learn rongoa.It's taught by Rob McGowan, a Pakeha Conservation Department staffer who learned rongoa while working as a Catholic priest in the Whanganui region in the 1970s.

He says people will learn how to find the plants they need, collect material without damaging the living tree, and prepare them for medicine.

Mr McGowan says the real learning will happen when people go back to their own elders.

“What I've found over many many years is if you can’t tell your trees apart, the old people often don’t think it’s safe to teach you rongoa, so the whole idea and the way we’ve structured the course is actually to give them a good starting point so at least they can relate to those people who really do know,” Mr McGowan says.

The weekend wananga will start in Hamilton and Tauranga in September.

PORT NICHOLSON PROGRESS ONLY FAST TO LATECOMERS

A Taranaki elder says the pace of treaty settlements is deceptive.

The Port Nicholson Block Trust is consulting Taranaki Whanui beneficiaries on the draft deed of settlements for its claims around Wellington Harbour.

Trustee Sir Paul Reeves, a former governor general, says while the dead was initialed the day after the giant Treelord central North Island forestry settlement, is is more than 25 years since the late Sir Ralph Love kicked off the process.

“It's true that it looks as if it’s suddenly coming in a rush, but all I can say is that we’ve done our work, and that we have worked very hard, and hopefully we have worked successfully and we look forward to our beneficiaries giving us the final ratification and therefore allowing us to return to the Crown to achieve the final settlement which we would like to do in the life of the present Parliament,” Sir Paul says.

HEALTH CHAMPION CELEBRATES SURVIVAL

This year's Public Health Champion says Maori can celebrate just being alive.

Marty Rogers from Te Rarawa and Ngati Kahu is a former chief executive of Auckland's Hapai Te Hauora Tapui and Maori health manager for the Waikato District Health Board.

Public Health Association director Gay Keating told the association's annual conference in Waitangi that Ms Rogers is one of the pioneers of Maori public health and has made an outstanding difference.

Ms Rogers says while there is a lot of work to be done, Maori can take comfort in the progress made so far.

“Doesn't matter what they throw at us, we’re still here. That’s what we have to celebrate. As a race, as iwi, as Maori, we’re still here and our kids are still having babies and we’re not going anywhere. So kia ora koutou is what I say, kia kaha.”

Ms Rogers says Maori need to create their own health infrastructure because the mainstream has consistently under-delivered.

James Te Tuhi from Te Kopuru near Dargaville has become an expert on the toheroa through his work as a kaitiaki, as well as what he's learned from elders over the years.

He says the humble kauta at the back of the marae used to be where knowledge was passed on.

“The trouble with the maraes now I see, they’ve taken that fireplace away. You’ve got gas stoves and all flash looking marae, but they haven’t got the fire at the back where the old people used to sit down over the long hours and talk and do a bit of cooking and give you the stories and histories of their areas and things like that. That’s all gone, and they expect to do it in wananga and things like that,” Mr Te Tuhi says.

Kaumauta should try to get their mokopuna to record their stories, so what they have learned through life is not lost.

Thursday, July 03, 2008

Life length trend positive

Professor Tony Blakely, an epidemiologist at Otago University, says all countries have experienced a big increase in life expectancy since 1945.

Maori are living on average at least fifteen years longer than they were immediately after World War Two, but the trend started going backwards during the economic restructuring of the 1980s and 90s.

He says that's turned around again after a lot of effort by government and grassroots groups.

“Heaps of Maori by Maori for Maori providers made a difference here. Upturn in the economy’s made a difference here. Various things that have been done successfully and partially successfully to reduce inequalities in income and unemployment have had an effect, and also the work by the mainstream health services,” Professor Blakely says.

He says governments need to be aware of the impact policies can have on life expectancy.

TAHU POTIKI DEFENDS NATIONAL TREATY EXPERT

An iwi leader has defended the man likely to become treaty negotiations minister in a future National government.

The Prime Minister, Helen Clark, says progress on treaty claims will slow under National because its justice spokesperson, Chris Finlayson, doesn't have enough experience in the field.

Tahu Potiki, a former Ngai Tahu chief executive and now chair of the Otakou Runaka, says the former Bell Gully lawyer represented the tribe in treaty litigation for the decade before he entered Parliament.

He says Mr Finlayson was more than a hired gun.

“Chris has really committed himself and his thinking to the bigger strategic issues on behalf of Ngai Tahu, and in doing so has been very effective in influencing the thinking of the leadership in Ngai Tahu and there’s been late night support for people like myself and of course Sir Tipene and Mark Solomon and others that have to address those big issues that iwi have to face now around the Treaty of Waitangi and treaty litigation,” Mr Potiki says.

He says it's inevitable it will take a new government 18 months or so to come up to speed.

MAORI LAND COURT WANTS TO HEAR IKAWHENUA CASE

The Maori Land Court has refused an injunction which would have stopped the Central North Island forestry settlement.

But it has agreed to investigate whether Ngai Moewhare ki Ngati Manawa has title to a large proportion of the Kaingaroa number one block, which is a key part of the proposed settlement.

Applicant Maanu Paul says it's a major win for his hapu, which has tried for years to be heard before the Waitangi tribunal.

“We had our evidence submitted to the tribunal back in 1994, and we wanted it put into the CNI hearings, they wouldn’t hear us there, they chucked us over the Urewera hearings. That hasn’t made a report. That hasn’t heard us. We went to the tribunal to try and be heard for our resumption orders. They refused to hear us on the grounds that we had run out of time,” Mr Paul says.

The case under section 131 of Te Ture Whenua Maori land Act should be heard before the Treelord settlement legislation goes through parliament.

TANIWHA TRAINING COULD IMPROVE WATER SAFETY RECORD

A water safety educator believes a revival of tikanga may be the way to reduce drownings in Taitokerau.

Brian Harris from the Northland District Health Board says too many locals are getting into trouble on the coast, particularly middle aged Maori men with a lifetime of diving and fishing.

He says kuia and koroua say the respect for tangaroa shown in the past is missing.

“For many of those older people, they spoke in terms of their uncles or aunties telling them where the limits were where the boundaries were, things that were tapu at times, sometimes where a taniwha might be, and some of what we would call today some of the checklists for good water safety practice.Mr Harris and.

With his colleague, Taane Thomas, he has developed a water safety checklist using traditional Maori knowledge.

WAKA AMA GOOD FOR PUBLIC HEALTH

Waka ama is being hailed as a successful public health story.

Clayton Wikaira, a health educator for the Northland District Council, told the Public Health Association's conference in Waitangi that the sport has grown in the region from one outrigger canoe in one community eight years ago to 14 teams around Taitokerau.

Paddlers regularly compete at international level, and it's something the whole family can do together.

Mr Wikaira says once Maori communities are hooked on waka ama, they are more receptive to other health messages about smoke-free lifestyles and healthy eating.

RAHUI SOUGHT TO SAVE MARAETAI COCKLES

A Tamaki iwi says the Ministry of Fisheries is finally listening to its plea to protect a dwindling cockle population.

The ministry has called for public submissions on a rahui at Maraeai, on Auckland's southeast edge.

Laurie Beamish from Umupuia Marae says Ngai Tai Umupuia Te Waka Totara Trust has been pushing for a two year harvesting ban.

He says cockle numbers have dropped 90 percent over the past decade, and the current 50 shellfish a day limit is impossible to enforce.

“The only practical step at the moment is to put a rahuio on the beach for a two year period, monitor the population and reassess it. I believe a couple of year and then a rollover of a couple of years to rebuild the population of tuangi, the cockle,” Mr Beamish says.

Rongowhakaata wants park back

The Gisborne District Council is arguing over whether it should make a city park available for return to Rongowhakaata.

The iwi wants the Office of Treaty Settlements to buy the land from the Council so it can be returned as part of the wider Turanga settlement.

The land was taken for a cemetery, but never used for that purpose, and is now the city's main soccer ground.

Kaumatua Darcy Ria says the council should do the right thing.

“My hapu, Ngei Tawhiri, were the original owners of that land. It was taken over by the council. Never approached the people. They went on their own bat and went ahead with the taking of it in the 1920s or later. I just want it back,” Mr Ria says.

MAORI-GREEN TIE-UP A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH

A Green MP says iwi need to learn to make better use of environmental groups.

Meteria Turei says the action taken against the Whangamata Marina shows how effective the partnership can be.

Hauraki iwi and environmentalists are occupying the marina site, because they says the discovery of a colony of rare moko skinks should stop the development.

Ms Turei says it's a model for other areas.

“By combining iwi and hapu interests both from the kaitiakitanga point of view but also from a rangatiratanga point of view, and then having the environmental lobby backing that up with the information they can generate through their communities as well, is what gives you the greatest strength to fight off developers who want to destroy the environment,” Ms Turei says.

The Whangamata Marina Society says it has all the proper consents, and the development will go ahead once the skins are moved to a new habitat.

ROSE LADY HENARE MOVED HOME FOR FUNERAL

In Taitokerau, the body of Rose Lady Henare is being moved about now from Otiria Marae to Motutau, where her funeral service is due to start about two this afternoon.

It's been a huge tangi, as iwi from the north and around the motu have passed through to pay their last respects to the leading kuia of Ngati Hine and Ngapuhi.

There have also been ope from organisations whe was a member or patron of, such as Kohanga Reo and the Maori language commission.

Bishop Kito Pikaahu says Lady Henare was held in high esteem within the region and the Anglican church, of which she was an active member at many levels.

“I found a great inspiration from her personally because of her experience of life and being the wife of our big chief, Sir James, there had been significant experience that would help anyone who listened to the stories and how that translates into contemporary society,” Bishop Pikaahu says.

TAPU AND NOA USEFUL CONCEPTS IN PUBLIC HEALTH

A far north public health specialist says Maori would do better in the health system if their personal tapu was respected.

She says the idea of things being sacred and non-sacred could be used in codes of practice for Maori patients.

“Health practitioners across the board can be using tapu and noa as a health code because as we all know, tapu and noa is about safety, a risk management tool. How can we apply that to start making a difference in the quality of health that we as Maori are faced with on a daily basis,” Ms McNab says,

The 400 delegates will also discuss smoking among pregnant Maori women, sleep disorders and the continuing inequalities in health outcomes.

THESPIANS LOOKING FOR BOARDS TO TREAD IN TAMAKI

Maori playwrights, producers and actors are trying to find ways to spark a Maori theatre scene in Auckland.

Jenni Heka from Playmarket says there is a well established Maori theatre scene in Wellington, but the same conditions don't exist in Tamaki Makaurau.

But the attendance at a Playmarket Matariki forum in the city shows there is a hunger for something to happen.

“It's not like we aren’t telling stories. It’s just we aren’t telling stories in this way of putting it on stages, so I think it’s just getting the onus on people to say yes, I will produce your work, yes I will help you get it out there and yes I will find ways to get the funding to get it up,” Ms Heka says.

A Maori woman exporter has been remembered with the opening of a village bank in Peru.

Judy Hawkins, who was from Taumaranui but married into Ngati Kahungunu, pioneered the export of squash to Japan, and did a lot of work pulling together uneconomic Maori land in the Hawkes Bay for contract growing.

Her friend Mavis Mullins says Mrs Hawkins' death last year came as a shock to the women she met through her participation in the APEC women leaders' forum.

At last month's forum in Peru, they found a way to honour her.

“They initiated a fund to open a microfinance bank in Peru up at Lake Titicaca. Just amazing that in a little tin shack up in that beautiful spot in the middle of nowhere is a photo of Judy Hawkins with the name of her bank there and a pounamu,” Mrs Mullins says.

Wednesday, July 02, 2008

End of road for Treaty 2 U

The Treaty 2 U show is coming to an end after covering thousands of miles around the country.

Project manager Kit O'Connor says the Treaty Truck will be dismantled after a stop this week at Onehunga High School.

The exhibits will then go on a museum tour, starting in Wellington.

She says the truck has had a mostly positive response over the three year tour of schools, festivals and public spaces.

“In some schools the treaty is not taught because New Zealand history has been optional. For some schools, this has been the only dedicated treaty programme that they have had within their senior school, which is quite astounding in some ways but as much as anything it’s for us to give an opportunity to role model teaching the treaty within a school environment,” Ms O'Connor says.

The museum tour should allow communities to complement the Treaty 2 U material with local case studies.

NGATAI AIMING TO BE MAORI FACE OF SOUTH AUCKLAND POLITICS

One of the candidates in the Manukau City Council by-election says the city needs more Maori representatives.

George Ngatai, a Family Party member, is one of 10 candidates lining up in the Otara ward to replace William Sio, who is now a Labour list MP.

He says sitting on the council's Treaty of Waitangi committee has given him a sense of what needs to be done.

“Even though there's around 10 of us on this Treaty of Waitangi committee, we only deal with Maori issues. I’m wanting to get out there and say it’s about representing Maori issues across council rather than just in one particular committee,” Mr Ngatai says.

More Maori live in South Auckland than in Wellington, but too few are prepared to represent their views at local or national level.

BUDGET FOR MORE MAORI NURSES ACROSS HEALTH WORKFORCE

There's a big push on to get more Maori nurses.

The government has allocated $12.2 million to increase the number of Maori in the health workforce.

Mark Jones, the chief nurse for the Ministry of Health, says it will be spent on upskilling people already practising and recruiting new nurses.

He says there is a big demand from iwi providers, but Maori nurses are needed across the health service.

“We need to be encouraging mainstream providers to see the value of Maori nurses in their systems and I think kaupapa Maori principles are equally applicable throughout the mainstream health system as they are in iwi providers, and I’m just looking forward to the day when I can walk into one of our hospitals and see Maori nurses represented in the workforce there to the same extent they are in the general population,” Mr Jones says.

TUREI ENCOURAGES SKINK PROTEST

The Greens' Maori affairs spokesperson says Maori should fight to protect a colony of endangered lizards.

Meteria Turei says the discovery of moko skinks on the site of a proposed carpark for a marina should be enough to halt the development.

The Whangamata Marina Society has been trying to capture and remove the animals, but the site is now being occupied by Hauraki iwi and environmentalists.

Ms Turei says it's one of the few places on the mainland where moko skinks can be seen.

Maori and environmental groups have opposed the marina since it was first mooted.

TARANAKI WEBSITE FOR TRICKY DIALECT

Taranaki whanau far from home can now get online help to drop their Hs.

Te Reo Taranaki charitable trust has updated its website to include a new resources, including recordings of the pronunciation peculiar to the west.

Ruakere Hond from Taranaki, who is also a Maori language commissioner, says the majority of Taranaki descendants live outside the region, so it's good to give an authoritative point of reference.

“Quite often it's not the words written on the page but it’s how they’re pronounced and the flow of the language and intonation of voice, all those sorts of things have an impact on the way the language is perceived, so further on down the track as we develop a digital archive, the web site will be able to give access to the language archive that will include audio, video,” Mr Hond says.

INDIGENOUS WOMEN SHARE BUSINESS STRUGGLES

A leading Maori businesswoman says indigenous women are taking a lead in business development.

Mavis Mullins has just got back from an Apec conference in Peru, where she presented a paper on Maori women exporters.

She says many of the South American women had similar stories to share.

“There is a keen desire to support women in these economies because one of the neat things that is coming through everywhere is it is women who are driving a lot of the economies, especially the developing economies, and it is in fact the indigenous women who are who are driving a lot of it,” says Mrs Mullins, from farm contractors Paewai Mullins.

DESIGNER PICKING UP TEXTILE PRESERVATION TIPS

A Ngati Kuri textile designer is taking a bite of the big apple.

Bethany Matai Edmunds is off to New York University to do a Masters degree in Arts, Visual Culture and Costume Studies.

The weaver and fibre sculptor is keen to learn textile conservation, to complement her background in whatu and raranga.

Edmunds says she's not part of the Maori exodus overseas... she'll definitely be back in two years.

Capacity vital in claim process

The chief executive of the Crown Forest Rental Trust says the central North Island forestry settlement shows the importance of maintaining capacity within the bureaucracy.

The trust uses the interest on forest licence rentals to fund the research and negotiation of forestry claims.

Ben Dalton says it slashed staff several years ago after a parliamentary committee criticised its administration costs.

It soon found itself struggling to service claimants, and it had to rebuild expertise.

He says that means it was able to respond when new treaty minister Michael Cullen stepped up the pace of negotiations.

“All over the country there are tribes that are getting close to terms of negotiation or agreements in principle and pretty significant momentum, and in order to service those groups, you need good staff and people who understand these matters, like are able to build relationships with claimant groups, are able to deal with contracts. They’re not exactly cheap to find at the moment,” Mr Dalton says.

The trust has enough money to service all claimants who will be left after the large central North Island forests are handed over to an iwi collective.

SKINK SILENCE SUSPICIOUS TO MARINA PROTESTERS

Opponents of the proposed Whangamata marina are accusing the Conservation Department and local government of trying to hide the discovery of a rare native lizard on the site.

Hauraki iwi and residents protested yesterday against a move by developers to relocate the colony of moko skinks.

Grant McKintosh from the Surfbreak Protection Society says the skink colony was unknown when the project was approved, and news of its discovery only leaked in the past fortnight.

“There has been no public notice from DOC, Waikato Regional Council or Thames District Council that there are moko here. There has been no public notice and it’s all been done in house. I would say that most communities, if they found a moko habitat and moko flourishing, would proudly announce it to the community and the community would become part of it, enhancing that area and looking after that habitat,” Mr McKintosh says.

Residents and iwi want the Minister of Conservation to stop the marina.

MARINA SOCIETY DEFENDS SKINKING MOVE

But the Whangamata Marina Society says it was given permission to relocate the skinks in February.

Its president, Mick Kelly, the project will go on despite the protests.

“We were alerted in February that they may be there so we undertook a survey on the site that they were there and we applied to DOC for an urgent permit which was granted and the first round of capture has been done and we were hoping to start a second round of capture about two weeks ago, but that was held up,” he says.

Mr Kelly says hapu were consulted about relocating the moko skins.

CLARK UNIMPRESSED WITH NATIONAL’S TREATY PICK

The Prime Minister is warning National's pick for treaty negotiations minister won't be able to sustain the pace set by Michael Cullen.

John Key has indicated Chris Finlayson is likely to get the job if National takes the treasury benches.

“I'm not aware that he has had any engagement with any of these issues so if he were to be in such a role, he would take years to come up to speed. The whole thing goes on the back burner. He just doesn’t have that experience. He may be a smart lawyer, but hey, there’s a lot of smart lawyers working for all sorts of people in the Treaty area,” Ms Clark says.

She says concern over treaty progress is helping consolidate Maori support behind Labour.

TOHEROA KNOWLEDGE TO BE SHARED

A Ngapuhi kaumatua is sharing his expertise in toheroa with tamariki.

James te Tuhi from Te Kopuru near Dargaville has written his first book in an attempt to protect the iconic shellfish.

What he learned from his grandparents, as well as his mahi as a kaitiaki since the 1980s relocating toheroa to rebuild stocks on Northland beaches, has given him a comprehensive knowledge of the species.

“We know how to do toheroa. We know how to bring it back. We know how to grow it. We know everything about it. I’ve spoken for the last 30 years to the grown ups and I’ve taken it from Muriwai right up to Te Hapua talking about the toheroa, but nobody’s taken it up and so I decided to go into the schools and use that media of laying it out to the children,” Mr te Tuhi says.

Toheroa was translated into Maori by Ross Gregory, and includes a history of the shellfish, its main predators and how to protect the resource.

HENARE AT HOME IN BOARD ROOM OR KITCHEN

Members of the Kohanga Reo National Trust will be among the hundred of people making their way to Otiria Marae near Moerewa today to pay their last respects to a former patron.

Rose Lady Henare died on Tuesday aged 96.

Iritana Tawhiwhirangi, the trust's former chair and chief executive, says Lady Henare came on the trust after the death of her husband, founding patron Sir James Henare.

She made a valuable contribution.

“While she was a trustee and had a finger on the pulse of the policies and the developments, she also played another role there. She was in the kitchen at the back and she walked through there and made sure that everything in the kitchen was top of the bill, as was the business. She moved freely between the policy kaupapa side and the kitchen, looking after people,” Mrs Tawhiwhirangi says.

Rose Lady Henare will be moved tomorrow to Motatau to be buried beside her husband.

Tuesday, July 01, 2008

Rotorua hapu wants airport to move

A Rotorua hapu is rejecting claims there is no alternative to extending the city's airport.

Ngati Uenuku-kopako has lost its latest attempt in the Environment Court to protect its marae and kura, which lie in the path of a runway extension to take international flights.

Spokesperson Te Ruapeka Taikato says the hapu has already lost its land under the Public Works Act and had its whare tipuna destroyed when the airport was built in the 1960s.

He says the hapu has given enough to the airport.

“They can move somewhere else. That’s the alternative. They have spoken about that. If they did move and gave the land back to us, we would keep it as a domestic airport,” Mr Taikato says.

Ngati Uenuku-kopako’s next step is to lodge a claim to the airspace over the marae with the Waitangi Tribunal.

MOKO SKINK IN WAY OF WHANGAMATA MARINA

A tiny native lizard could stymie plans for multi-million dollar marina in Whangamata.

Members of Hauraki iwi were out in force today on the site to urge conservation minister Steve Chadwick to stop the project, which would destroy the habitat of one of the largest populations of the endangered moko skink.

The Whangamata Marina Society had intended to start relocating the skinks today.

Nathan Kennedy, from Ngati Whangaunga, says the recent discovery of the lizard colony came on top of Hauraki's concerns about the marine environment.

“Our primary motivation is they want to cut a huge channel straight through our pipi bed. It’s a very significant pipi bed for Hauraki. When all our other kaimoana has dried up or we have got rahui, there’s always this one here for tangi, for hui, that we can fall back on, so we just can’t allow them to destroy it,” Mr Kennedy says.

Hauraki wants Ms Chadwick to open a further inquiry into the marina.

LADY HENARE’S OLD FASHIONED DIRECTNESS REMEMBERED

A former Kohanga Reo patron is being remembered for the wisdom and leadership she brought to the job.

Rose Lady Henare from Ngati Te Ara and Ngati Hine died yesterday at the age of 96, and is lying in state at Otiria Marae near Moerewa.

She became a patron of the Kohanga Reo National trust on the death of her husband, Sir James Henare.

Iritana Tawhiwhirangi, a trustee and former chief executive, says Lady Henare made an invaluable contribution to the revitalisation of te reo Maori.

“She was typical of the old people I knew when I was growing up. She had that same sort of dignity and purpose and no-nonsense. Whereas some elders will just sit and listen, she was into it and making comment and straightening us out and quite firm about it. This is what she said and this is what you do,” Mrs Tawhiwhirangi says.

NGATI WHATUA REMEMBERS FIRST SCORE

It's 20 years today since the Lange Labour government announced it was accepting a Waitangi Tribunal recommendation to return Bastion Point to Ngati Whatua o Orakei.

That brought to a close a tumultuous decade which started with the arrest of 222 protesters on the land, and set the stage for the hapu taking a larger role in Auckland civic and commercial affairs.

Grant Hawke, the chair of Ngati Whatua, says having something tangible to work with brought the hapu together.

“Prior to that there were three major factions in our hapu: those that sided with the Crown all the way; the ones that were the administrators of the then Orakei Marae, with tauiwi and that; and just the very few Ngati Whatua, But it was the beginning of the reconciliation for us,” Mr Hawke says.

CANCER CALENDAR TO RAISE FUNDS FOR MAORI SUPPORT

Maori cancer survivors are the subject of a fundraising calendar launched in Rotorua.

Michael Naera from Te Kahui Hauora Trust says it was launched at Apumoana Marae last weekend to give whanau of the people involved a chance to celebrate and to tangi those who did not see the calendar's completion.

He says although the topic was grim, the models glowed when they put their korowai on and stood at their marae to face the camera.

Proceeds from the calendar will go to Arohamai, a Rotorua Maori cancer support group.

MAORI FASHION TAKES NEXT STEP DOWN CATWALK

A showcase of Maori fashion has revealed there's more to it than a koru on a tee-shirt.

This week's E Whitu nga Whetu Matariki Fashion Show in Auckland pulled together local designers including Anahau, Jeanine Clarkin and Moa.

Lady Rose Henare dies

Ngati Te Ara and Ngati Hine and Ngapuhi whanui are in mourning for Lady Rose Henare, who died yesterday in her 98th year.

She was from the Cherrington and Ashby whanau.

She married James Henare before the war, and the couple had several children.

Her nephew, Pita Paraone, says Lady Rose managed the family farm at Motatau while her husband was overseas with the Maori Battalion.

He says she was a leader in her own right through organisations like the Anglican church mother's union and her local marae.

“In spite of the leadership position she held in her own right, she was very supportive of her husband and all the work that he did and in fact certainly gives credence to the fact that behind every good man is a good woman,” Mr Paraone says.

He says it's a huge loss to the motu and to the north.

E Te Kahurangi, moe mai ra

SELECTION DELAY THROWING SEAT CHANCE AWAY

A disgruntled Maori Party candidate says the party could be throwing away its chances in Te Tai Tonga because of the way it's handling reselection for the seat.

Edward Ellison is upset the party is going back out to the market for another candidate after the death of Monte Ohia, rather than go back to those who contested the February selection.

He says the new process, which compresses the 10 selection hui into two days, is a drain on resources and boosts the chances of Labour incumbent Mahara Okeroa.

“We all said in the February process that whoever got the role would have to hit the road running then, so it makes it a challenge for whoever comes through this particular process and we don’t know because it is a bit variable, Not everyone is going to get a chance to meet the candidate because of the way the new process is proposed to run,” Mr Ellison says.

Maori Party president Whatarangi Winiata says the February selection hui weren't well enough attended to give the party confidence the two unsuccessful candidates could get the necessary support in the electorate.

UNIVERSITY RUGBY LEAGUE HOPING FOR WORLD CUP VICTORY

Eight Maori tertiary students have headed to Brisbane as part of a New Zealand University Rugby League team.

The Kiwis are hoping to retain the University World Cup title they won by downing Australia 17-8 three years ago.

Henry Heke, a post graduate degree commerce student at Victoria University, says there are six other teams to get past first... including some the Kiwis haven't met before including France and Ireland.

The Kiwi lineup includes Kereroa Savage from the Hawke's Bay, who played Reserve Grade for the Roosters NRL team.

Lady Rose was known as a leader in Te Taitokerau and throughout the north, not only in support of her husband, the late Sir James Henare, but in her own right.

Her nephew, New Zealand First MP Pita Paraone, says Lady Rose was always generous with her time and willing to share her knowledge of the culture, language and history of the north.

“It's a link to the past we were fortunate to enjoy when she was alive and now that has been broken and it’s a very sad thing not only for the family, not only for the sub tribe of Ngati te Ara but also of Ngati Hine and Ngapuhi whanui,” Pita Paraone says.

Lady Rose Henare is will probably lie in state at Otiria Marae being being buried beside Sir James at Motatau.

TAGGING IDEA FIRST PUT UP BY WARDENS

West Auckland Maori wardens are upset the Corrections Department has stolen one of its ideas.

Jack Taumaunu says a pilot to make offenders clean graffiti along railway tracks is uncannily similar to a proposal put to the department by Waitemata Maori Wardens four years ago.

He says the wardens have been frozen out, despite the unique skills they could bring to the project, which involves mostly Maori minor offenders.

Mr Taumaunu says it's good to see the intimidatory graffiti being removed.

SOUTHERN SELECTION PROCESS DEFENDED

The Maori Party is defending the way it is re-selecting a candidate for Te Tai Tonga nomination.

Edward Ellison, one of the two contenders for the role says the party needs to explain why it needs to hold a completely new selection process after the death of Monte Ohia.

But the party president, Whatarangi Winiata, says the 10 selection hui held in the southern Maori electorate during February were poorly attended, and he was surprised Mr Ellison was unable to muster more support from his Ngai Tahu people.

“We did think of going back to the people right there and then but decided that the people had chose Monte twice, 2005 and 2008. We would rely upon that,” Professor Winiata says.

Nominations for the position close next week, and the nominees won't be required to attend all the selection hui.

Monday, June 30, 2008

Treelord cheap deal for Crown

A former Labour cabinet minister says the government is getting a cheap deal out of the latest treaty settlement.

John Tamihere says last weeks's Treelord agreement, which will put 176,000 hectares of forests and $220 million in the hands of central North Island iwi, is 20 years overdue.

That's how long it is since Maori stopped the privatisation of state forest assets.

He says since then the forest rents have been building up in the bank, with the interest funding the claim process.

“The Crown Forest Rental Trust has come out to pay millions of dollars up and down the country to a bunch of iwi to resource them to stand up against the Crown, get historical evidence up, get economic evidence up, get iwi-based evidence up. Pakeha New Zealand have never woken up to this, because it looks like the Government and they have been beneficent towards the Maori populations. Quite the reverse in this case,” Mr Tamihere says.

Michael Skerrett says the iwi want to stop commercial dredging and limit anything but customary harvest of the giant shellfish.

It won't stop public access to the beach or floundering.

He says the iwi is keen to do further research on the toheroa fishery to understand more about the biology of the bivalve and the effects on them of traffic and environmental considerations.

Mr Skerrett from says the mataitai plan has won the backing of the Invercargill City Council, and the next step is to apply to the Fisheries Ministry.

MAORI ALL BLACK HIT THHE NIPPON GROOVE

The Maori All Blacks finally found their groove with a ten try haul against Japan in Napier on Sunday.

A hat-trick of tries to replacement wing Hosea Gear and two each from Zar Lawrence and Callum Bruce added to the 65-22 scoreline.

The New Zealand Maori team takes on Australia A in Sydney next Sunday to decide the winner of the Pacific Nations Cup.

Commentator Te Kauhoe Wano, who was at the game, says fans of the Maori team have been looking for more cohesion in the backline.

Te Kauhoe Wano says given their form in the tournament, it's disappointing neither Tanirau Latimer nor Liam Messam got the call for the All Blacks ahead of an aging Chris Masoe.

TE TAI TONGA ASPIRANT GRUMPY AT RESELECTION PLAN

A unsuccessful aspirant for the Maori Party's Te Tai Tonga nomination is unhappy at the way the reopened selection process is being run.

Edward Ellison says he has not heard formally from the party since the sudden death of candidate Monte Ohia earlier this month.

He says February's selection was extraordinarily thorough, and it was clearly stated at each of the 10 hui that any of the three candidates would be supported by the party faithful.

“With the passing of Monte, I’m struggling to understand why they’ve moved from that process without explaining why they haven‘t looked at the runner up and why they’ve made that change to go to a compromise process that may or may not throw up the best candidate to win the seat,” Mr Ellison says.

He won't be putting his name forward for the new selection process.

OLD KNOWLEDGE NEEDS TO BE RECORDED

Nga Puhi kaumatua James Te Tuhi wants to set an example for elders up and down the country.

He has just written his first book, Toheroa, about the history and protection of the native shellfish.

Mr Te Puhi says knowledge is different than formal education.

He says kaumatua should ensure their words, and the lessons they got from their tupuna, were recorded, if not by themselves, then by their children and mokopuna.

Mr Te Tuhi has an honorary degree from Auckland University of Technology for his work preserving toheroa.

ORIGINS OF OWAE MEETING HOUSE EXPLORED

Ngati Porou joined Taranaki iwi this weekend to rediscover some important historical connections.

Maui Pomare weekend at Owae Marae in Waitara at the end of June celebrates the life New Zealand's first Maori doctor and minister of health, Maui Pomare.

Organiser Ruakere Hond says there was a special focus on the house Te Ikaroa a Maui, which was built with help from Apirana Ngata and carvers Pine and Hone Taiapa.

Ngati Porou was invited to come over and share what they knew about how the house was created.

He says the day is also a chance for Taranaki people to reconnect with their reo and tikanga.

Information to help landowners

Massey University is leading a project to Maori landowners decide how best to use their land.

Tanira Kingi, the leader of the three-year Integrated Maori Land and Resource Development framework, says it is initially advising four trusts how to access planning tools and models.

About half of Maori land is considered underutilised, and large land blocks around the country aren’t used for any kind of production at all.

Dr Kingi says this of often because of lack of support for owners, and the Massey framework aims to demystify the development process.

“There’s large areas of Maori land that is under-utilised, land blocks that don’t have management structures, and blocks that do have a trust or some kind of structures where owners can get together, it’s very difficult for them to access information on the quality of the land and the alternatives they can use the land for,” Dr Kingi says.

The project, which also involves Landcare Research, AgResearch, Scion and Te Arawa Lakes Trust, is being trialed in Northland, Bay of Plenty, Hawke's Bay and Manawatu.

SOUTH AUCKLAND POLICE TAKE STATION TO THE STREETS

South Auckland police have a new station .. . on wheels.

The Counties Manukau mobile police unit will be deployed to hotspots to provide high visibility patrolling as well as operational support for major incidents.

Richard Wilkies, the senior sergeant in charge of the unit, says allows police to work with the increased numbers of Maori Wardens on the streets.

“We have a high population of Maori in south Auckland and being able to call upon our colleagues in the Maori warden office and work with them sends a clear message that we’re supportive of our Maori community and we’ve been able to show that high visibility that is required in areas that require it because of what’s been happening,” Mr Wilkies says.

He says being able to put a police station into the heart of a community is reassuring for the public.

TSUNAMI PLANNING INCLUDES COASTAL MARAE

Maori communities are being encouraged to think about what they would do if a tsunami comes.

The Ministry of Civil Defence is Emergency Management is holding seminars for local authorities, welfare agencies, emergency services, utility companies and marae on what to do before and after a tidal wave strikes.

The director of civil defence, John Hamilton, says tsunamis are infrequent, people in coastal communities underestimate the risk.

“All communities that are on the coast, particularly the east coast, and of course there are a number of Maori communities on the east coast which are at risk. The East Coast is the most prevalent area for tsunamis, particularly large ones either generated by local earthquakes or earthquakes way over in South America,” Mr Hamilton says.

He says coastal communities need to plan their response, councils need to signpost areas at risk, and the country as a whole needs to develop an early warning system.

WAAHI TAPU DEFENDED IN NEW LAND STRATEGY

A new development strategy is looking at how Maori can get the most out of their land without compromising waahi tapu.

Tanira Kingi, from Massey University, is working with trusts from Te Arawa, Ngati Hine, Ngati Kahungunu and Ngati Rangitane which have underutilised land.

He says the Integrated Maori Land and Resource Development framework differs from other programmes because it integrates places like waahi tapu and urupa into the plan.

“There are a lot of examples around the country where urupa and other sites have been damaged as the land has been brought into commercial production, and this information on the significance of these sites wasn’t taken into account. So that’s one off the things we are going to be looking at in the programme is giving an examples of how that information can be collected and stored by the landowners and how that information can be used in development plans,” Dr Kingi says.

He says the historical significance of sites was a key consideration for Maori land owners,

AUCTION TO HELP AUCKLAND’S POOR AND HOMELESS

Maori homeless are among those who will feel the love as Aucklanders auction their services for charity.

Everyone from plumbers to party boys have put themselves forward for the Auckland City Mission's third Trade Me On Trade Me auction, which starts tomorrow.

City Missioner Diane Robertson says there has already been a 21 percent increase in demand this year, and winter has just started.

“Everybody who’s living in poverty, for people who are living on the streets, for family trying to feed their children on low incomes, winter power bills are high, it’s tough to cope with children who are sick, getting your children to kohanga reo and back in the morning, the cost of petrol, all of those things, finding accommodation, all expensive and winter is just an additional stress for them,” Ms Robertson says.

The Auckland City Mission gives out more than 5000 food parcels a year

TAHA MAORI HIP HOP ON NEW HANSELL EP

A Ngapuhi musician says there is room in hip hop for taha Maori.

Hayley j Hansell’s latest EP, "You are not who you know". Includes a collaboration with Hungarian producer Illegalvoice.

She says her writing is influenced by Maori hip hop artists like DLT and Che Fu.

“Everything about what I do might not come across overtly but it’s definitely pro-Maori and pro-people against a certain system that might hold you back,” Hansell says.

MAORI TEAM PREVAIL AFTER SHAKEY START

The New Zealand Maori rugby team overcame an error-filled first half to down Japan 65-22 in Napier on Saturday.

Japan led 22-17 at the half after taking advantage of some loose passing, but were unable to stop seven second half tries.

The Maori team takes on the other unbeaten side, Australia A, next weekend.